The Die Is Cast
by Mrs. Handsome
Summary: He couldn't handle the nightmares, the pain, the loss. But, he was alive, and he could tell by the sudden flush of relief on Liberty's face, that he'd be okay-for now. Multi-chaptered. Jiberty. Based on the events of Rock This Town, with the usual survival twist, but-isn't there more to life than survival? J.T. will soon find out.
1. Chapter 1

Ice. It felt like his entire body was slowly growing rigid with ice-yet not completely providing relief once the knife was jerked unceremoniously out of his back; when he finally became aware of exactly how much blood was pouring out of him, running down his shirt and jeans. It felt as though his body were being ripped in two entirely different directions—as though he weren't slated for either life or death, but instead, somewhere in between. He was starting to lose his mind, barely becoming aware of his knees crippling underneath him as he slid down the door of his car, covered with the piss of the two drunk Lakehurst kids. They'd already ran off, that was sure. Although, in the corner of his eye before he collapsed, he could see one of them, the one with the long hair and the brown baseball cap, stare at him in shock, before running away at the sound of someone's voice. That same voice was coming closer, and louder, deafeningly louder; he thought his brain was going to split in half.

"J.T?!"

Suddenly he felt himself being lifted up with someone's arms—familiar arms, carrying a familiar scent. A light frown graced his pale lips as the girl—Liberty—cried for help desperately, cradling his head, and smoothing his hair back from his eyes with her hands. He didn't realize his eyes were closed until he noticed how dark everything was, and how light he was feeling—as though he could float carelessly in midair. And then suddenly, a laugh emerged from somewhere deep in the back of his throat, turned quickly into a choke without relent. His comeback line, much too late, came out as a whisper.

"I hope those two goofs realize they've completely ruined my best shirt. I wore it just for..."

He never got to finish his joke, for his eyes had closed again without his permission and he lost feeling everywhere, yet felt searing, white-hot pain all at once, as he slumped forward, relinquishing himself to his injury.

"J.T.! Wake up! SOMEONE HELP! PLEASE!"


	2. Chapter 2

White.

Unlike what was...what, hours ago? All he saw was white for a moment, and then suddenly the headache came back, followed by an incessant urge to cough. As he did so, he felt as though his back were going to collapse. And then, the coughs kept coming, taking every breath—every thought of ever getting better, from his mind.

_Is this heaven?_ He thought to himself. _No...it can't be..._another series of coughs seized his body again, and he could feel the rubbery fingertips of the nurse gently force his head back down to the hospital bed. _It can't be...because heaven doesn't hurt._

He could hear hushed voices, and eventually, once he opened his eyes, he saw the nurse in the white hospital jacket, whispering to a lady standing by the door. "...the patient's brother...shown sign of life..." was all he heard, and he instinctively furrowed his brows at that. _Brother? I don't have a-_ "J.T.!"

"Toby?!" He was sent into another coughing spasm again, and the nurse rushed over, scolding him about talking, and asking him concernedly if he'd had a shortness of breath. J.T. nodded his head lightly, and focused his eyes on the matter at rest.

"J.T., we were all so worried..." He'd noticed Toby's glasses were askew, and the thought to take the opportunity and knock them off his nose flashed through his mind for a second. Toby, however, re-adjusted them himself, revealing his wet cheeks and reddening eyes.

He reached for J.T.'s hand, who had sunk deeper into the pillows, his signature smirk appearing on his face. "So, when did we start sharing the same DNA?" was what he wanted to say, but the 'so' came out as a hoarse undertone, and he thought better of it; instead raising his eyebrows and meeting Toby's generous gaze.

He started to play with the hem of his plaid flannel, with an unapologetic grin. "We had to uh..." his voice lowered to a whisper, and he cleared his throat. "Just pretend, okay? It was the only way I could get to see you."

"You should get some rest." The familiar voice of his overbearing nurse rang out over his head.

J.T. nodded, and Toby offered a half-hearted smile to him, before exiting the room. Before he knew it, he felt his eyes droop closed, and he heard the sound of Toby's footsteps grew smaller and smaller, the room growing shadowy, and eventually, everything fading to darkness.

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**Author's Note- **Sorry, these chapters are really short, but they'll get longer as J.T. stops having blackouts. Thank you for reading, and please review!


	3. Chapter 3

"Toby, how is he?" Her footsteps flew across the hospital floor, and could rival the speed of a teacher that'd caught a student cheating. Although, she'd never been in that situation—both her appearance and academic repertoire had always been immaculate. However, now, her eyes were bloodshot and shining still with tears, her hair was frizzy and tousled from sleeping overnight on the hard waiting room chair, and her nails were peeling from biting them raw the day before. Liberty Van Zandt looked an absolute mess.

"Liberty, you look a mess." Came the inevitable response from Toby. Manny, Emma, and Sean had returned to the party to clean things up, once they realized there was nothing left to do but wait. They were on their way now, basing off the ecstatic all-caps text message Toby had sent them earlier.

She rolled her eyes, contrasting harshly with the relieved sigh she let out. "Well, considering the huge grin on your face, I could assume J.T. is fine!" She finally sat down in her chair, and he could notice her visibly relax. "J.T. is fine, right?" Her eyes flickered up to meet Toby's.

"Yes, J.T. is alive and kicking! He's been coughing a lot though, I think, and he only saw me for a couple minutes, and then he fell back asleep. Now, I'm going to go get you some chips from the vending machine, because for one, you look like you haven't eaten in months, and two, I need an excuse to pass by that hot lady doctor downstairs..."

"I can't believe you...your best friend just got, literally, stabbed in the back, and you're trying to flirt with a woman that's probably ten years older than you? Who are you, and what have you done to Toby Isaacs?"

"Look, Liberty, maybe this relief complex isn't familiar to you, but I, on the other hand, wish to stretch my legs and celebrate with a look at one of the finest creations Canada has to offer!" He shrugged, now rummaging in his pocket for some money.

She sighed. "I just...I just want to see him, okay? I keep telling myself that he wants to see me, and that I should be here, but at the same time, Mia is his girlfriend...He loves her, and not me and I'd feel like I'd be intruding by visiting him before she gets to..."

Toby stared, the reflection of his glasses only furthering his look of disbelief. "Wait, what? Why would you be worried about Mia, J.T. said-" He stopped himself. _I guess he never told her then..._"Just don't worry about it, okay? You and J.T. have been friends for years! I'm sure he's _dying_ to see you."

"Dying? Really Tobes? After everything that just happened?" She indulged in a smile then, and rubbed at the streaked mascara around her eyes.

He grinned sheepishly. "Sorry, I'm not too great with hospital terminology protocol...if that even exists. Anyway, I'm headed to the machine now..." He gave her the once-over and ran a hand through his hair thoughtfully. "The bathroom is down the hall, to the left...you should go, uh...freshen up..."

She considered sticking her tongue out at him as he turned on his heel towards the next hall, but instead caught herself in a yawn, reaching for her brown leather shoulder bag for her cell phone.

"9:46..." Liberty realized how much time had went by—almost twenty hours since she found J.T. collapsed against his car...blood running down his back...a frozen expression on his face as he went out of it...

She wasn't tired. She'd woken up in the seat next to Toby that morning, her head resting on his shoulder, and his glasses askew. She hadn't realized how much time had really gone by...she spent most of it texting back and forth with Manny, who'd relay any of the doctor's words to the rest of the group.

_I need to get myself together_. She decided. _J.T. could wake up again at any moment, and I wouldn't be there to say...what would I say...hi? I'm sorry for confessing my love to you and ignoring your relationship with your girlfriend? I'm sorry for not finding your sooner? Oh, hey, J.T., what's up? Just reminding you that you're the love of my life, and I'm glad that aortic aneurysm thing didn't kill you, because, you know...I love you..._

"Okay, that's it!" her thoughts were aloud this time, and she was slightly stricken by the sound of her own voice in the quiet. She raised herself up on her feet, and allowed herself a moment to breathe, pushing all morbid thoughts of J.T. out of her mind.

_Alright...down the hall to the left..._

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**Author's Note-** So, this one is out of the perspective of Liberty and Toby, arguably the two friends that loved J.T. the most. I figured they'd react to his awakening different ways, especially since Liberty still obviously has a significant romantic connection to him. Anyway, thanks for reading, and please review! :)


	4. Author's Note

Hiya, everyone (and by that, I mean the few people actually coming back to this story),

I know I haven't really established this story as a three-shot, and rather influenced a multi-chaptered vibe, but I honestly don't think I will continue it. It's not because a lot of people aren't reading it; I hope you won't think that-I just haven't been feeling it anymore. I will still leave this story open to interpretation, and who knows; maybe someday I'll finish it after I get inspired.

And it isn't just this story, it's all the stories I've been writing in the past year. I've only managed to finish one of them, and that was a Harry Potter fanfiction I'd started over a year ago (one of my first fics).

I just don't think I have the ability to write stories like that anymore. I do still love to write fanfictions-I'm just not committed to them. So, why didn't I just establish all of my stories as one-shots (or two-three-shots)? Because I _thought_ I'd be able to finish them. I _thought_ it was just a phase of the writing process, and that I'd return to it after a few days. But, I've realized those few days turn into weeks, and then months, and then...the story disappears. I didn't want to be one of those authors with unfinished projects.

But, that's what a lot of my stories have turned into.

I'm sorry. Not for abandoning my stories, but for telling myself that I'd finish them when deep down, I knew I wouldn't. Much like an eighth grader in her first "serious" relationship, I'm just not ready for the commitment.

Don't worry though-I'll still upload a few one-shots here and there. But, nothing serious. Just a casual relationship, if you catch my drift.


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